De Beers to Sell Diamonds from Artisanal Miners

RAPAPORT... De Beers announced plans to work with artisanal miners in Sierra
Leone to ensure their diamonds are ethically sourced and sold at a fair price
on its auction platform.

The company has partnered with the Diamond Development
Initiative (DDI) on the project, known as GemFair, which is set to launch a
pre-pilot phase this month. GemFair will provide tracking technology to
artisanal and small-scale miners (ASM), aiming to create a secure and
transparent route to market for their diamonds, De Beers said in a statement
last week.

“The ASM sector represents a critical income source for many
poverty-affected communities,” said De Beers CEO Bruce Cleaver. “However, due
to parts of the sector being largely informal and unregulated, it lacks access
to established international markets and the ability to derive fair value for
participants.”

De Beers hopes the new project will help grow acceptance and
prospects for artisanal miners, in addition to creating a new supply source for the
company, Cleaver added.

Miners who want to participate in the program need to
receive certification from the DDI as well as from GemFair. Participants will then
be given a diamond “toolkit,” which includes technology enabling them to digitally track
all stones throughout the supply chain.

Once the initiative is operational, GemFair will begin buying
stones from participating miners, which will then be sold via De Beers’ Auction
Sales channel.

De Beers has not set a date for the pilot’s completion, but
hopes to make the first purchase later this year.